A shocking case of cybercrime has rocked Pune after Laxman Sadhu Shinde, a respected businessman from Kothrud, was found murdered in Bihar’s Jehanabad district. Shinde, who owned a casting and bearing unit in Khed Shivapur and was an alumnus of the College of Engineering Pune (COEP), fell victim to an elaborate cyber-led business entrapment that ended in his brutal killing.
Shinde was approached via email and social media by fraudsters posing as representatives of a major mining equipment project in Jharkhand, offering a lucrative ₹100 crore business deal. Trusting the seemingly genuine proposal, he flew to Patna on April 11, 2025, and informed his family that he was being taken to Jharkhand for a site visit. That was the last time his family heard from him.
Soon after landing, Shinde was kidnapped by the gang. Investigations revealed that he was taken through Nawada to Jehanabad, where he was held captive and assaulted. The criminals attempted to extract money from his bank accounts, withdrawing ₹90,000 using his ATM card. When he refused to provide further details, he was fatally beaten. His body, found on April 14, showed clear signs of physical assault. The gang tried to disguise the murder as a road accident.
Alarmed by his disappearance, Shinde’s family filed missing person reports in Pune and Patna. A joint operation between Pune and Bihar police led to the identification and arrest of several suspects. So far, up to 11 people have been arrested, and more are being questioned as the investigation uncovers a wider cybercrime network operating between Patna, Nalanda, and other regions.
Authorities found that the gang had created fake companies, forged documents, and used sophisticated cyber tactics to lure businesspeople with promises of high-value deals. The case highlights a disturbing pattern where cyber fraud has escalated from financial scams to violent crimes targeting unsuspecting entrepreneurs.
